On 10th November 1920 the above photo (IWM ref Q111468

On 10th November 1920 the above photo (IWM ref Q111468 ) shows the Unknown
Warrior being borne along Admiralty Pier, Dover to be buried in Westminster Abbey
next day. Michael Gavaghan on Page 7 revisits the writing of his book entitled “The
Story of the UNKNOWN WARRIOR” which was first published in 1995. On Page 16 is
the latest regarding Lieut Col Sir Gilbert Mackereth who was the next British soldier to
be exhumed from his grave on the Continent and repatriated to England. The
Remembrance Stone over his cremated remains in the Gallipoli Garden, Bury will
unveiled by his first cousin John Sloan on 11th November 2011.
Editor’s Musing
Coincidences
have
tinged
my
productions of Despatch and they
continue into Issue 8. The story of Sir
Gilbert Mackereth’s repatriation is the first
since the Unknown Warrior’s to
Westminster Abbey and resulted in me
locating ex-Preston postman Michael
Gavaghan via my local postman Steven.
When John Sloan identified himself as
Sir Gilbert’s first cousin would he have
dreamt that his service in Palestine after
WW2 was a continuation of his cousin’s
unconventional work in 1936/37.
Congratulations to Andy Gregson on St
Cecilia’s, Longridge holding the Armistice
Prize trophy for the 3rd year. I’m very
grateful to Andy for his efforts to expand
interest in the competition (see Page 22)
Thank you to all contributors to
Despatch and special thanks to Mike
Glover for help in the reverent delivery of
“Project Mackereth”.
MORE INFORMATION FOR ARTICLES WHEN:
(+P) : photos, maps in Photo Gallery,
(+S) : supplementary information report
See our website www.wfanlancs.co.uk and look
against this Despatch
QUEEN
ELIZABETH
GRAMMAR
SCHOOL, KIRKBY LONSDALE, ROLL
OF HONOUR: c/o Oliver Wilkinson
John
William
HAYGARTH
Lance
Corporal, 2876, 1/7th (City of London)
Battalion
John William
Haygarth’s war
service takes us
back to a major
offensive of the
First World War;
The Battle of
Loos.
Additionally, in the incorporation of
poison gas during this offensive, we learn
about a further dynamic being developed
during the war.
By September of 1915 the war had
been running for over a year and it was
decided by the French that a huge
offensive was needed to break through
the German defences. The French attack
would be in the Artois area, and the
British would support by attacking near
Loos. Moreover, as adequate artillery
was lacking the British pinned their hopes
on the incorporation of poisoned gas. The
Historian of the 47th Division, which
incorporated
Haygarth’s
Battalion,
commented that the gas-cylinders
containing this new weapon were treated
“with a certain holy dread.” In the opening
days of September, Haygarth would have
been involved in meticulous training
behind the lines. Mock-up trenches were
set out and the movements of each unit
in the forthcoming attack were rehearsed.
During this time Haygarth wrote home to
tell his family that he was going into the
trenches, and that they must not be
alarmed if his letters were irregular. On
the morning of 25th September at ‘ZeroHour’ (5:50 a.m.) the Battle of Loos
began with the release of the gas. The
event was described as follows:
“The cloud rolled slowly forward, and
its effect was apparent from the lessening
force of the enemy rifle fire.”
Interestingly, the attack on Haygarth’s
front, began with a diversion. ‘Dummy’
figures operated by wires were pulled up
and down in front of the enemy in order to
draw some of the fire. At 6:30 a.m. the
infantry advanced. Haygarth, with the 7th
(City of London) Battalion, advanced on
the Double-Crassier, which was a twin
set of mining slag heaps. The first
objective was a front line trench near the
Double-Crassier, which was reached with
few casualties. However the Germans
soon re-mustered after the confusion that
the gas had caused, and put up a
massive resistance. Additionally, due to
the lack of artillery fire the wire remained
intact, resulting in many casualties.
Despite this, all the objectives were
achieved, and the 7th held off a sustained
German counter-attack. Total causalities
educated at Dent Church School until he
was 12. His academic ability, however,
won him a scholarship at Queen
Elizabeth Grammar School, where he
went for 5 years. At the school he was
held in high esteem for his scholarly
ability, his sporting prowess, especially at
cricket and football, and his charismatic
personality. Mr J.L. Johnson, who
became Headmaster of the school in
1911,
described
how
Haygarth had greeted him
when he had first arrived:
“[John William Haygarth]
was somewhat shorter and
rotund with a round face
and a merry twinkle in the
eye, which plainly told the
observer
that
the
possessor of the said eye
could laugh if an occasion
arose.”
of the 47 Division, were described as
light, standing at 1,500. Haygarth was
one of these causalities, most probably
being killed during the initial assault on
the Double-Crassier. He was the first lad
who went directly from Dent to fall in the
war, and he was just 21 years old.
The death of John William Haygarth
was even more tragic due to the promise
that the young man had shown in life. He
was born on 30th January 1894, and
This
cheerful
and
unassuming
disposition
was later said to have won
him great respect wherever
he went, and would
certainly have been an
asset during his war
service.
Upon
leaving
school he gained an
appointment as a bank
clerk at the banking house
of Glyn, Mills, Currie and Co. of London,
which he took up in 1911. When war
broke out in August 1914, Haygarth was
still working at the bank, but quickly
responded to the call of his country, and
by September he was training with the 7th
City of London Regiment. The regiment
spent some time training in England and
did not go to France until March 1915.
Haygarth, however, didn’t reach theatre
until the 18th August 1915, perhaps
3
reinforcing the Battalion ready for the
upcoming attack at Loos. During his first
year in service Haygarth’s abilities had
set him apart, and he joined the regiment
in August with a promotion to Lance
Corporal.
Unfortunately
before
Haygarth’s ability, apparent from his early
school days onwards, could develop
further he was killed in the shadow of the
Double-Crassier at Loos. His body was
never recovered, and he is remembered
on the Loos Memorial alongside 20,000
other men. His friends from QES also
remembered him, and a former ‘old boy’,
Captain W. Haythornthwait, wrote to the
headmaster thanking the school for their
remembrance, and specifically drawing
attention to the honourable sacrifice of
John Haygarth.
Once again, however, John William’s
story reveals yet further tragedy. His
brother Benjamin Haygarth joined up
shortly after his younger sibling had been
killed. He was transferred to the Royal
Field Artillery and sent to serve in India.
However, on the 5th October 1918
Benjamin was struck down by pneumonia
and died. A father, Mr. R Haygarth, had
now lost two sons. Benjamin also left a
widow, Mrs Margaret Haygarth (nee
Morphet), who had also lost her brother
in the war. Through John William
Haygarth’s story a picture of the
enormous impact of the First World War
is glimpsed. Just one family had to bear
the loss of three men in the prime of life,
and unfortunately the Haygarth’s story
was not unique, and was instead
replicated countless times between 1914
and 1918.
….NO WEAKNESS NO CONTEMPT
DISPRAISE OR BLAME NOTHING BUT
WELL AND FAIR AND WHAT MAY
QUIET US IN A DEATH SO NOBLE Major R D Harrisson, DSO, Royal Field
Artillery
4
A DOUBLE ENTRY:
Barrie Bertram
With twenty-twenty hindsight it now
seems so obvious that two adjacent
entries in Jersey’s 1919 Roll of Service
(RoS) were one and the same man. But,
perhaps the fact that one name which
was spelt out as François Pierre Louis
Desvergez could not have been
associated
with
the other being
Francis
Peter
Desvergez
not
least
because
they
also
appeared to have
come
from
different parishes
on the Island, François from Trinity,
Francis from St Helier. Besides, many of
the same forenames were oft-repeated
across families, especially the French.
We’ll take ‘Francis’ first, and although
the RoS entry records him as belonging
to the Bedfordshire Regiment, his
Attestation Form indicates that he joined
the Hampshire Regiment from Jersey on
the 4th December, 1916, being given the
number 32812. The Form shows that he
went to the Hampshires’ 3rd Battalion at
Gosport five days later and that he was
aged 18 years and 1 month, while his
NOK was his mother, Selina Desvergez,
who at that time resided at Varin Cottage
in Vallée des Vaux. He does not appear
to have been a strapping lad, being only
5 feet 1½ inches tall. Of course as they
all do, he signed to say that all of his
details were correct!
It may have been that he regarded the
Great War as fun, or that he could not
recognise a Drill Sergeant’s irony on
parade, with the script drawn from that
little book that all such NCOs are given.
For, while with the Hampshires, ‘Francis’
received his first spell of ‘jankers’ for that
most heinous of military crimes,
‘Laughing on Parade’ in March, 1917. A
month or so later, ten days in hospital
and further eighteen convalescing
followed, thanks to a bout of influenza.
In mid-June a transfer was made to the
2nd/5th Battalion of the Bedfordshires,
then located at Carburton adjacent to
Clumber Park in the Dukeries, when he
was now allocated a new number, 47030.
His trail of military crime now continued,
and further spells of ‘jankers’ ensued for
being ‘Dirty on Parade’ and ‘Neglecting
his Duty as a Mess Orderly’. It is unclear
why the transfer took place, and it might
be that he was regarded as an unsuitable
soldier, or that other factors were now
emerging. Perhaps the following letter
goes some way as a possible
explanation:
Jersey, Aug. 13th 1917
To The Colonel
Carburton Camp
I beg to ask you to send back my son
home. Enclosed his birth certificate, he is
under age, being not yet 17, and has
signed his enlistment too, without my
permission. I have two sons in the Army,
one is missing and the other one is [a]
prisoner of war in Germany. François
Pierre Louis is my youngest, he can
assist me by his work, my husband being
an invalid and I have no fortune at all. I
hope you will comply to my request and
that my son will be soon sent back home.
For Madame Desvergez
Varin Cottage
Les Grands Vaux
St Helier, Jersey
[PS] Please to let me have back his birth
certificate.
At the end of the letter there followed
detail much of it that has been covered
above, yet it also
clearly stated that
his date of birth
was
the
12th
December, 1900.
One
assumes
this period was a
trying time for
Selina
(Celine)
Desvergez, and I suspect that her
command of the English language was
very limited, and that a friend wrote the
letter on her behalf. Yet, it also seems
that the Army, in the shape of the
Hampshires, was also aware in late April,
1917, and like so many organisations, the
military cogs grind exceedingly slow! Her
piteous plea was answered eventually,
for on the 17th September, 1917, our
‘Francis’ was discharged from the Army
after a mere 288 days of service to
become ‘François’ once more.
But before we continue to look further
at ‘François’, we might like to consider
the contents of Selina’s letter in which
she refers to her invalid husband and her
two other sons. From the 1911 Census,
when the family lived in a cottage at Mont
au Prêtre, it appears that her husband
was Etienne, while there were three
sons, Auguste (18), Pierre (15) and the
errant ‘François’ (then aged 10). There
was also a daughter Marie (5). Pierre
must have been the prisoner of war, for
Auguste had been killed in action at La
Harazée, Marne, while serving with the
French 94e Regiment d’Infanterie on 10th
February, 1915, a fact that Selina had not
had formally confirmed in 1917.
So, what happened to ‘François’? His
RoS entry records him as being in the
Royal Navy and this is correct also. For,
on 25th March, 1918 he again enlisted,
5
was given the service number J87016,
and having learnt his lesson, cited his
correct date of birth! At this stage, he had
decided to make the Navy his life, and
was serving onboard HMS Mimosa, an
Acacia-class sloop, at the Armistice.
Given that, he would marry a Nellie May
Atkins in the second quarter of 1932 at
Plymouth, one can assume that he was
still serving, given the wedding’s location.
Meanwhile, his naval service record up
until the 31st December, 1928 does
indicate that he was no longer a military
criminal!
Yet, there is a more regrettable clue to
his continuing naval service in that his
name appears in the CWGC Debt of
Honour Register as having died during
World War 2. Shown as an Able Seaman,
and now with the number D/87016 (the
‘D’ standing for Devonport presumably?),
he was serving onboard HMS Exeter.
Like many, I associate the Exeter with the
Battle of the River Plate, in December,
1939, that saw the German Graf Spee
engaged by the Exeter, along with the
Ajax and the Achilles, and then
subsequently
scuttled
outside
Montevideo. Whether François was on
board at the time, I do not know, but the
Exeter was badly damaged and
immediately required a major repair and
refit, returning to the UK.
In due course, with Japan entering the
war, Exeter was sent to the Far East, and
during the Second Battle of the Java Sea
on 1st March, 1942, was sunk. François
6
survived this but was picked up, I was
going to say rescued but it seems
inappropriate, and was made a prisoner
of war by the Japanese. Two years of
privations and ill-treatment undoubtedly
followed, and on the
16th April, 1944,
François would die,
while his widow
would later remarry
a George Levy in
1946.
Today,
François’
burial
place is in the
Ambon War Cemetery in one of the
groups of islands that makes up
Indonesia, and sadly a location, I
suspect, that receives very few British
war graves pilgrims today.
There is a puzzling little postscript to
this account. The CWGC Debt of Honour
Register correctly records that François’
wife was Nellie May, but reports that his
parents were Peter Louis and Yvonne
Desvergez. Clearly this differs from the
1911 Census and the details that
‘Francis’ had provided in 1916. Was
Peter Louis in fact the prisoner of war
Pierre?
In conclusion, François Pierre Louis
Desvergez was little different to many
who saw the Great War as an adventure
and a way-out from home into the big
world, and his enforced return to Jersey
lasted a mere six months. He was, most
likely, a very ordinary, yet brave, JerseyFrench lad, whose two entries on
Jersey’s RoS conceal an interesting tale
that only becomes apparent when the
paperwork is there to be read and the
connections made.
THE MIDNIGHT STARS SHINE OVER
THE GRAVE OF ONE WE LOVED BUT
COULD NOT SAVE - Pte W Speed
Lancashire Fusiliers
A Favourite Postcard: Andrew Brooks
In collecting terms the picture postcard
illustrated is known as a ‘WW1 Military
pull-out’. It copied
the design of
many
pre-war
cards where a
flap on the card
was lifted and a
concertina strip
of
black
and
white views was
revealed. In prewar cards the b/w
views would be
of the town or
resort mentioned
on the card but
during the war these images would
usually be of a military camp or
humorous depictions of soldiers enjoying
camp life.
Each design (of which many are
recorded) could be used for many places,
with the name impressed on the front of
the card e.g. Durrington Camp. The
design is not seen ‘On Active Service’
and is confined to those troops training in
the British Isles. Probably the most
popular type was a rear view of a soldier
with a knapsack on his back. The flap of
the knapsack was lifted to reveal the
views.
My favourite card shows two soldiers
carrying a box and it states on the front of
the card that you would need to look at
the postmark to see from where it had
been sent.. The ‘box’ is in fact much
smaller than shown on the postcard and
is a Field Post Office. This black iron box
was in use before the war and used on
manoeuvres and other large military
exercises. Many such boxes went with
the B.E.F. to France. It was under the
care of a corporal and two sappers and
held postal orders, stamps, cash, lead
seals for mail-bags, rule books and
scores of other items – not forgetting the
red and white flag that was flying when
the office was open. This box could be
lodged anywhere: in an open field, barn,
tent or dug-out.
THE
UNKNOWN
WARRIOR
REVISITED: Michael Gavaghan
‘This book is written by an unknown
about an unknown. I hope I have not
done him an injustice’.
The words above were placed at the
end of the acknowledgements of my book
“The Story of the Unknown Warrior” and
they still ring true today.
It is remarkable that the First World
War still remains a topic for immense
literary output, once one of works of
sentimentality and now one of battlefield
tourism and facts and figures, these
books are a remarkable testimony to the
enduring fascination among the British
public for the war. By contrast the main
objective of the Unknown Warrior was
that sufficient money would be raised to
allow a memorial to be placed at the
village of St. Pol sur Ternoise where on
7
7-8 November 1920 the Unknown
Warrior had been selected.
The Great War was, for the country a
traumatic experience - and still remains
an emotional one especially on 11
November. (In the years immediately
after the war the main collection day for
those soldiers wounded and in need was
on 4 August the day war was declared.)
was indeed a surprise. A copy of the
book had also been sent to the Canadian
government to assist in their own
selection procedure and the book itself is
listed in over thirty other works. All this is
due to a book that I wrote and published.
The outcome was, to say the least a
surprise and a pleasant one at that.
MUSEUM REPORTS
King’s Own Royal Regiment Museum,
Lancaster: Peter Donnelly
Private William Hodgson’s Diaries
Boulogne: 10th November 1920
The bringing home of an unknown
soldier quickly to be rechristened the
Unknown Warrior, although the Unknown
Comrade was a far popular choice with
the military but not with the government,
was for many the final ending of their
sorry; more so to those families whose
loved one’s had no known grave and
therefore no place to visit. The Unknown
Warrior quickly passed into the footnotes
of military history and it is the Cenotaph
that remains the Nation’s national
memorial as it was planned to be.
In 1995, having returned from another
visit to the Western Front I decided to
write a book on this unknown soldier. The
type of book, its contents, pages and
pictures required were at that stage
unknown, but the work had to cover the
process of the selection and burial of this
unknown man. The realization that within
ten years and after numerous radio and
press interviews five memorial’s would be
erected and dedicated to this sole event
8
Branch member Mrs Dorothy Maguire
kindly lent to the museum the First World
War diaries and letters of her nephew
who served with the 2nd/5th Battalion of
the King’s Own from 1914 until his death
on Empire Day 1917. The museum has
now published the diaries and letters in
book form telling the story of Private
William Hodgson’s training and active
service on the Western Front. William
Hodgson was 6ft 5 inches tall and this
posed a problem in supplying him with
uniform and in the first photographs of
him with his comrades he’s still in his
civvies whilst everyone else is in khaki!
The book contains his diaries, letters as
well as the battalion’s war diary for the
period over seas. It is available from the
museum for £9 including postage, or
£7.50 from the museum shop. (See Page
20 for Howard Martin’s review of book).
Sergeant James Greenwood MM
Fusiliers Museum: Mike Glover (Curator)
The museum has received as a
donation the medals and collection of
postcards relating to Sergeant James
Greenwood of the 1st Battalion, King’s
Own. James Greenwood had served
with the King’s Own in the early 1900s,
leaving in around 1907. He married
Jane, a Bolton girl, and then he moved to
Canada to find work in 1913, with his wife
and daughter, Mary, following a year
later. No sooner had they joined him,
than he was recalled from the Reserve
and he travelled back across the Atlantic
and after a detour via Plymouth he
arrived on the Western Front on 22nd
October 1914. He was awarded the
Military Medal but later killed exactly two
years after he arrived in France, award
being published in the London Gazette
the following month. He is buried in
London Cemetery and Extension,
Longueval. James’s wife and child
remained in Canada and his daughter
Mary died recently and had hoped to
donate his medals and postcards to the
Canadian War Museum, but as he was in
the British Army they suggested that the
King’s Own Museum was a more
appropriate home.
Green Fingered Fusiliers
Forthcoming Events:
A Soldiers Christmas: Thursday 8th
December 2011, 19.30 to 21.00.
Come along to our special evening
event where curator, Peter Donnelly, will
describe
how
soldiers
celebrated
Christmas through the years, using both
objects and archives from the King’s Own
Museum’s collection. Admission is free
and seasonal refreshments are included.
To be held in the museum’s education
room, access from New Street.
THE BEST IS YET TO BE - Major C G
Phillips Royal Lancaster Regt
The relationship between town and
regiment has always been strong in Bury
and this has been illustrated, in a very
tangible way, in the form of two gardens
to be opened to the public. These garden
spaces will not only provide a permanent
memorial to the Lancashire Fusiliers and
Royal Regiment of Fusiliers but will also
provide much needed green spaces for
the public to enjoy in Bury. Funding the
projects has not been easy but £100,000
grant funding has been secured for the
two schemes. Both gardens will be
formally unveiled on Friday 11th
November 2011, which is significant as
the 11th of the 11th of 2011.
Wellington Barracks Memorial Garden.
In May 2009 the Ministry of Defence
(MoD) and the Regiment finally withdrew
from what remained of Wellington
Barracks in Bolton Road, Bury. The
original barracks was built between 1842
and 1845 and was part of the Napier
Scheme to garrison the industrial North
West in order to prevent civil unrest. In
1873 the depot companies of the 20th
Foot, the East Devonshire Regiment,
arrived in Bury. In 1881 they were retitled the Lancashire Fusiliers and thus
began their link with the county. From
then on Wellington Barracks was the
centre of Regimental activity throughout
the late 19th and 20th Centuries,
despatching troops to the Boer War, the
Great War and the Second World War.
However following the Second World
War, Wellington Barracks proved to be
too small to be a viable training
establishment and closed in 1961. As
funding was not available to move the
9
Regimental Headquarters, Museum,
Memorial and Association Club into Bury
as originally planned, they remained in a
small MoD enclave which itself came
under scrutiny at the beginning of the 21st
Century.
The Regiment decided to jump before
it was pushed
and following the
£4.2
million
Fusilier Museum
Project,
moved
lock, stock and
barrel into new
accommodation
in the centre of
Bury. The move
included
the
Fusilier Memorial
which is officially
part of the Headquarters. However, the
removal of the Memorial left a significant
physical and mental gap on Bolton Road.
It was therefore agreed with all interested
parties that it would be appropriate to fill
the gap by developing a memorial garden
on the site of the original entrance to
Wellington Barracks and also the original
location of the Fusilier Memorial.
Through the Regimental Association a
grant for £50,000 was obtained from a
company called Viridor. This company
allocates funds from land fill tax for
community projects and was very
supportive. The memorial garden project
includes several interesting features
including the restoration of the old
cobbled surface at the entrance to the
barracks, the installation of a three metre
obelisk, based on the original Fusilier
Memorial, and considerable replanting.
The garden will also incorporate a limited
facility to bury ashes of deceased
Fusiliers. The end result will not only be
a fitting memorial to Wellington Barracks
and all the Fusiliers that passed through
10
but it will also considerably enhance the
environment on Bolton Road, an
important gateway into Bury.
Gallipoli Garden.
The second green space is Gallipoli
Garden which is situated next to the
Fusilier Museum on Silver Street in the
centre of Bury. The garden was originally
called Sparrow Park and was purchased
by the council as the site for an extension
to the Technical School which was built
at the end of the 19th Century. The
additional building work never took place
and the area remained an open green
space eventually being named Sparrow
Park. In 2009, in honour of the Fusiliers,
Bury Council renamed Sparrow Park as
the Gallipoli Garden on the opening of
the
Fusilier
Museum.
During
construction, part of Sparrow Park had
been used as the location for a new
entrance to the Fusilier Museum. To
compensate for the loss of this
community space the Fusilier Museum
and Bury Council agreed to extend the
formal garden into an area of scrub that
occupied the north end of Sparrow Park.
The Friends of the Fusilier Museum
made a bid to the Community Spaces
scheme for financial assistance. This
organisation is largely funded from
Lottery money and its aim is to fund
community based projects that improve
the environment.
The Friends were
successful and a £50,000 grant was
allocated to the project.
The plan
involved the removal of the scrub area
which will be replaced by the planting of
new trees and shrubs, many had been
chosen
to
reflect
the
eastern
Mediterranean. A new path would be laid
and a granite garden feature engraved
with detail reflecting the Regiment’s
history would be installed.
Three
interpretation boards would also be
erected that would explain the Gallipoli
Campaign, the Fusilier Monument and
lastly the story of Lt. Col. Sir Gilbert
Mackereth MC (see Page 16 ) whose
Mike Glover receives Sir
Gilbert’s remains from TD
remains will finally rest alongside the
Fusilier Memorial. The Gallipoli Garden
Project would not only enhance the
overall garden environment but would
also provide an external location for
delivery of the museum education
package.
Both gardens prove that the link
between community and regiment is as
strong as ever, at least in Bury. These
green spaces will not only provide
suitable recreational spaces for the local
community but will also provide lasting
memorials to the Fusiliers.
These
projects have been the product of the
best efforts of the regimental family, with
the Regimental Association leading on
the Bolton Road bid and the Friends of
the Museum on the Gallipoli Garden
project. Finally I would like to thank Terry
Dean for his sterling effort to return a
Fusilier to his regimental family.
WE SHALL KNOW HIS VOICE IN THAT
HEAVENLY THRONG - Lt J B Sloan KOSB
Queen’s Lancashire Regiment Museum
Lieutenant Colonel Rudolf Ord MBE:
Amy Coaker, Museum Assistant
Lieutenant-Colonel Rudolf Ord of the
1/4th Battalion Loyal North Lancashire
Regiment (LNLR) was a serving officer in
the First World War. The correspondence
between Ord and his friends and relatives
during this time has recently been
donated to the Museum. In March 1913
he was a Lieutenant in the Battalion.
Ord was born to an English father,
Clement Ord, and German mother,
Johanna Anthes, on 5th July 1888 in
Reichelsheim-im-Odenwald, Germany. In
1891, Clement returned to England,
bringing his family with him, and they
settled in Bristol where he served as a
lecturer in English and German at
University College.
Rudolf had four siblings: Evelyn,
Mildred, Wilfrid, and Bernhard, the latter
of whom is notable as having served as
organist and choirmaster of King’s
College, Cambridge from 1929 to 1957.
Described by the College’s current
incumbent, Stephen Cleobury, as ‘one of
those rare musicians who became a
legend in his lifetime’, he is lauded not
only for his supreme technical skill and
musicality, but also for bringing the King’s
College Choir to international prominence
through foreign tours, recordings, and
radio broadcasts. Rudolf’s uncle, William
Edward Ord, as Mayor of Preston from
1906-8 and the first life president of
Preston North End Football Club, is also
worthy of note.
Rudolf married Phyllis Wilkinson
Newsholme at The Church of St
Lawrence in Barton, Lancashire on 4th
January 1915, but was permitted only
four precious months with his new wife
before leaving for France. He landed with
his Battalion at Boulogne on 4th May
11
1915 as Lieutenant Ord, a 26-year-old
signalling officer.
1/4LNL Officers, Bedford early 1915
On 25th May, the Battalion arrived in
the trenches for the first time, finding
them littered with the bodies of soldiers
who had fallen in the Battle of Festubert.
The Battalion were charged with finishing
the consolidation of the newly taken
ground – a task described in the
regimental history as ‘a pretty stiff
beginning for raw troops.’
On 15th June, the Battalion were
involved in an ultimately unsuccessful
attack aimed at capturing the front line of
German trenches east of Festubert. After
telephone
communications
were
obliterated by the enemy during the
hostilities, Ord was in charge of
organising messages to be sent by relays
of orderlies. Despite heavy casualties
and his position at strongpoint L8, where
the Germans directed the brunt of their
artillery fire, Ord was fortunate enough to
survive the attack unharmed.
Just two days later, however, he was
admitted to hospital; a letter to Rudolf’s
wife from his sister, Evelyn reads: ‘We
have just had a p.c. from Father telling us
that Rudolf is in hospital and the 4th LNLs
have had terrible casualties…For the
moment I can feel nothing but deep
thankfulness that he is safe and has been
spared when so many have had to go.’
Although no reason is given for Ord’s
hospitalisation in the regimental history,
correspondence home suggests he was
suffering from a combination of asthma
12
and hay fever – ills that would continue to
plague him throughout his army career.
Rudolf later briefly rested with the
Battalion’s reserves at Weeton Camp in
Kirkham, Lancashire before rejoining his
comrades again in France during
September 1915.
In the following few months, Rudolf
received two pieces of heartening news:
he was promoted to Acting Captain on
30th October, and became a father in
December after the birth of his first child,
Joan
‘Peggy’
Ord.
Unfortunately,
however, this good news was soon
tempered by bad when on 24th February
1916, Rudolf was diagnosed with
German measles and so again was
forced to take leave from the front.
By the end of March 1916, Rudolf had
returned back, as his wife put it, ‘to the
old beastly game.’ During the next
months, the Battalion saw action in the
Somme and it is at this time that Rudolf
affords some rare insights into his
perception of the war and his involvement
in it. Of the correspondence bequeathed
to the museum, only two of Rudolf’s
letters reference the war in any detail,
both of which are written to his father. In
the first, dated 20th September, Rudolf
characterises the racket of the enemy
guns as the ‘Kaiser’s Death Knell’ and
describes surviving a reconnaissance
through several distinct barrages without
a scratch. The second letter, from 3rd
October, moves to extolling the military
might of the Allies: ‘Our barrage fire is
something too terrible for words. It
resembles most a living moving wall of
fire, like hell let loose, gradually creeping
upon the enemy and has the most
terrifying effect.’
In October 1916, the Battalion moved
up to Ypres, entering the trenches in the
Railway Wood sector of the Salient on
the 19th. The subsequent day, Ord was
appointed Commandant of 164th Brigade
Officers’ School, later transferring to the
55th Divisional School in around
December. Although both schools were
stationed in France, Rudolf was of course
no longer embroiled in the perils of
frontline fighting – a relief to his family,
who rejoiced in his ‘safe’ and ‘cushy’ new
job. It was during this time he was
appointed temporary major.
On 5th July 1917, Ord returned to the
brutality of warfare and rejoined the
Battalion in the Ypres Salient. Rudolf
received a letter from his mother some
days later, expressing concern for his
wellbeing: ‘The copies from Phyllis today
confirm what we have been fearing: that
you are by no means in safe quarters. It
must, indeed, be a very, very different life
from that at the School; for Instruction –
though it may be for war – is not War itself
and preserves you more or less from all
its horrors.’
Her parental concern was not
misplaced; on 31st July, the Battalion took
part in the first assault of the Third Battle
of Ypres, with Ord acting as Second in
Command. Although the attack was
partially successful, and some advances
were made, the human cost was heavy
and many men were killed or wounded.
Rudolf’s luck had run out, and although
he escaped with his life, he suffered a
total of 26 injuries, including a badly
fractured arm; he was not to see active
service again for the rest of the war. As
Phyllis’s brother, Leonard, darkly joked in
an ensuing letter to Rudolf: ‘You have
really had a long run for your money, but
now that you have got it in the neck, you
appear to have got [it] right there…I
suppose I ought to have my piece of
shrapnel mounted for mother. For your
little collection I think you ought to get a
cabinet. It is too much to expect Phyllis to
carry the 15 inch shell they took out of
your left arm as well as the collection of
whizzbangs and minnies that you are
reputed to have coughed up.’
Rudolf was initially installed at No. 3
General Hospital in Le Tréport, France,
where he was visited by his wife, Phyllis
and sister, Evelyn. Evidently distraught at
Rudolf’s
fate,
his
family
were
nevertheless overwhelmed with joy and
relief for his survival; letters from Ord’s
mother to Phyllis read: ‘Thank God that
his life is preserved…it is good to know
him alive. Nothing ought to be hard after
that.’
In September 1917, Rudolf was
considered fit enough to make the
journey back to England, where he was
relocated to Queen Alexandra’s Hospital
for Officers in Highgate, London – the
same institution in which Robert Graves,
the famous war poet, had recovered from
his injuries the preceding year. Here, Ord
underwent a number of operations on his
arm to correct the fracture and remove
the worst of the shell fragments.
During mid-March 1918, much to his
delight, Rudolf was transferred to the
Officers’ Convalescent Hospital in Broad
Leys, Windermere; not only would he be
safely away from the air raids in London,
but he would also be closer to his wife in
Preston. Between regular visits from his
family and friends, Ord occupied himself
by performing as a baritone singer in
charity shows, raising money for injured
troops.
In late September, Rudolf received
more good news with the arrival of his
second child, William ‘Billie’ Ord. In the
same month, Rudolf
was informed that he
was to be removed
again to another
hospital; he hoped to
be placed at Alder
Hey in Liverpool,
13
which was renowned for its orthopaedic
care, but instead was located to one of its
branches: Dawpool Auxiliary Hospital in
Thurstaston, Cheshire. He arrived at
Dawpool in October and was there when
the war finally ended the following month.
A year later, on 29th October 1919,
Rudolf was at last discharged from
hospital and instructed to proceed home.
Given the ravages of the First World War,
Ord and his immediate family had been
remarkably fortunate in terms of their
losses; both of Rudolf’s brothers had
survived, so too had his wife’s. As Wilfrid,
Rudolf’s brother wrote to Phyllis: ‘There is
not one ‘vacant chair’ as a permanent
saddening memory of this Great War.’
Returning to civilian life, Rudolf
rejoined his wife in Barton and worked as
a leather merchant, as his grandfather
had before him. He became Managing
Director of Satterthwaite and Company, a
curriers and leather dealers based in
Preston. He also enjoyed involvement in
his local community, acting as a Justice
of the Peace and as the District
Commissioner of Preston Boy Scouts
Association; in 1948, he was awarded a
civil MBE. Rudolf passed away in 1982,
aged 94, having led a long and fruitful
life.
Ed: Pity donated photo of Ord with child
is such poor quality that he cannot be
identified in the excellent officer group
photo taken at Bedford in early 1915.
AND OH T'WAS JOY IN THE DYING TO
KNOW WE WERE WINNING YOU PEACE
- Pte W F Bedell MM 21st Canadian
Infantry
Manchester Regiment Archive:
Bolton
Larysa
As readers can imagine, one of the
most frequent requests of Regimental
Archive collections is for photographs.
14
This can either be from family members
searching for a military ancestor, writers
looking to publish an illustrated book or
media companies looking for images for
print or broadcast.
The Manchester
Regiment has a superb image archive
but until recently this has not be easy to
access. The collection needed
2nd Battalion officers relaxing
considerable sorting and cataloguing.
We made a conservative estimate that
there are around 5,000 photographs in
the collection, although regular donations
of photographs from the public means
this number is likely to be higher.
Back in 2009, we decided to address
the problem and successfully applied for
a grant from Tameside MBC to digitise
the Manchester Regiment photograph
archive. Work began in earnest and
we’ve
been
sorting,
classifying,
identifying and scanning for the last
couple of years.
This summer we
digitised the two thousandth photograph.
This seemed like an appropriate time for
a celebration of our work to date, so the
Manchester Regiment Image Archive
was formally launched by the Councillor
Susan Quinn, Civic Mayor of Tameside
on 8 September.
The Image Archive is very easy to
search either by a free-text search, by
keyword or by battalion. One of the best
features of the image archive is the
facility for members of the public to make
contributions of information about the
photographs.
This is where I hope
readers of Despatch will be able to help
us. There are numerous photographs of
the Western Front on the image archive,
and we are looking for any additional
information, either about individuals,
locations, equipment or artillery, to add to
the site. Making a contribution is very
easy as all you need to do is click on the
Can You Help link which is below each
image.
More photographs are being
uploaded every week so there is always
something new on the site.
The Image Archive can be found at
http://www.manchester-regiment.org.uk.
Liverpool Scottish Regimental Museum
Trust, March to October 2011: Ian Riley
The trustees and other volunteers have
had to undertake a considerable amount
of work during the past six months in
addition to taking on a substantial amount
of recurrent expenditure. As mentioned
briefly in the last Despatch, the entire
archive has been moved from the old
Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment Liverpool
Area office following its relocation in
much smaller premises. We have been
given access to two rooms in the Artists
Club, just off Dale Street. Initially, it was
hoped that just ‘a lick of paint’ was
needed but because of some required
building work and the necessity to pass a
modern electric supply through forty
yards and two floors of a very convoluted
and very solid Victorian structure, the
total cost, including professional removal,
amounted to £4000. The professional
removal was worth every penny: trustee
backs are no longer so trusty. Thanks to
plenty of preparation and labelling,
removal (shelf to shelf) took place in one
day although there has been a lengthy
period of adjustment. Although access is
slightly more restricted than previously as
a result of occasional functions in the
club additional to its normal lunchtime
operation (and there is a modest dress
code after 12:30pm out of respect for that
of our hosts), the arrangement is working
well.
As soon as the archive office had been
moved, it was necessary to shift stored
artifacts (about forty packing cases) from
one end of the Army camp in which they
are located to the other (about a
thousand yards). This is another major
exercise for our small team. This process
is continuing. In many ways, the new
storage location is an improvement but
we may well be asked to pay a small
rental charge here.
Transfer of material to the Museum of
Liverpool has come to a halt since the
spring because of their commitments in
opening the new museum on the Pier
Head. We travelled to a meeting in
Edinburgh to discuss our contribution to
the Museum of the Highlanders at Fort
George.
The
Liverpool
Scottish
Regimental Trustees (as opposed to the
Museum trustees) have donated £1500
to the Highlanders £3.2m appeal.
The digitisation of our archives
continues and we now have 38,000
photographic images and have been
assisted by a grant of about £500 from
the Army Museum Ogilby Trust to whom
we are very grateful. Although scans
might have given better images, time is
not on our side: most images are fine (or
better) for reference purposes and often
more readable than those in the National
Archives. The total cost of this during the
last twelve months, using trained student
labour as well as volunteers, has been
about £2000. This phase is now about
90% complete and we are about to move
15
on to the contents of our filing cabinets
both for photography and cataloguing.
The unfortunate aspect of the removals
and in pressing ahead with digitisation
before our small team of trained (but
supervised)
A
Level
students
disappeared to university is that we have
not had time to process queries for about
six months. This has had a serious
impact on donations to support
expenditure. The Secretary and the
Curator (both honorary and volunteer
positions) are about to start working
through the backlog of about eighty
queries though it is not anticipated that
this will be clear until Christmas.
LT. COL. SIR GILBERT MACKERETH –
Interment of his remains in Gallipoli
Garden, Bury: Terry Dean (+S)
(A summary of the full story about Sir
Gilbert’s repatriation should be in the
October/November WFA Bulletin and a
copy is on our website)
It seems ages ago now but in last
May’s Despatch I reported that I was
endeavouring to establish whether Sir
Gilbert made a Will in Spain which might
indicate whether he specifically wished to
be buried there. The outcome of my
formal enquiry with Spain’s Ministry of
Justice established that no Will for Sir
Gilbert exists in Spain. Therefore, having
regard to all the factors associated with
retention of
Sir
Gilbert’s grave in
Spain, John Sloan,
Sir Gilbert’s first
cousin, decided that
Sir G’s remains
should be exhumed
from his grave in
San Sebastian, cremated, transported to
Bury and placed in the Gallipoli Garden in
16
a reverent manner.
I then secured
agreement that funding the cost of
exhumation and cremation (596 Euros)
would be shared by John Sloan, the
Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and WFA
branches in Lancashire.
After completion of all the necessary
arrangements I collected Sir Gilbert’s
cremated remains from Polloe cemetery,
San Sebastian on 31st August and they
commenced the journey to Bury. On 14th
September I handed Sir G’s remains to
Mike Glover in the Fusiliers Museum in
Bury (see photo on Page 11 ) and agreed
the basis of an exhibition in the Museum
that would tell Sir G’s story.
Prior to me leaving for France on 9th
October I advised some members of our
Branch and the Chairmen of the East
Lancashire and Cheshire/Lancashire
WFA Branches of the exhibition.
Whilst away in France I was contacted
from “Down Under” and perhaps the trail,
which I thought had “gone cold” on the
Executor of Sir G’s brother-in-law’s Will,
is now warm again. I still have hopes
that Sir G’s medals and a cache of his
WW1 photos in France will be found.
On 27th October, with construction
work nearing completion on the
refurbishment of the Gallipoli Garden in
Bury
I completed my mission to
repatriate
Sir Gilbert
by placing
his remains
in
the
allotted
position
near
the
Fusilier
Memorial.
Adjacent is
an
interpretive
plaque (to
left of soldier & above my head) which
briefly tells Sir G’s story.
In a ceremony to commemorate the
extended and refurbished Gallipoli
Garden commencing shortly before 11.00
am on Armistice Day, 11th November
John Sloan will unveil a Remembrance
Stone to Sir Gilbert over the last
(hopefully) resting place of his remains.
John Sloan has searched out his
medals to wear on Armistice Day. He
served as a tank driver/gunner in the
King’s Royal Hussars during WW2 and
advanced into Germany whilst his cousin
got no further than Grammont in Belgium
during WW1.
John then served in
Palestine where Gilbert had attempted to
stem Zionist Terrorists in the late1930s
by unconventional means. James Barr’s
“A Line in the Sand”, which was
published in August, tells that story as
well as describing how the Middle East
was carved up during WW1 and the
exploits of Lawrence (see April 2012
meeting on page 27). As Sir Gilbert is
laid to rest hopefully peace will shortly
come in Palestine. The coincidences do
not stop with my musing on Page 2. Last
year I was invited to speak at the
Lancashire/Cheshire Branch. The talk
chosen
was
“Several
Battalion
Commanders” (of whom Sir Gilbert was
one) and the date selected was 11th
November 2011.
A SOLDIER'S GOOD NAME IS HIS BEST
MONUMENT - Sergt A Teasdale,
Northumberland Fusiliers
On the Somme 2011:
Shackleton (+P)
David & Pat
News from the Somme this year is
dominated by the explorations of the
Glory Hole at La Boisselle. Already
several personal stories have been
highlighted, one of which is on the
excellent website dedicated to the
Lonsdales (Men could do no more).
Access to the Glory Hole reveals just how
intense the fighting was in this area.
Kidney Trench, named by the French
soldiers because of its shape, is just one
example. Thanks to the owners, this area
will hopefully, as a result of the survey,
be preserved.
Following on from last year's dig at
Mametz, an excellent exhibition is
currently on at the Historial in Peronne.
Next year a major exhibition entitled "The
Missing of the Somme" will begin on 19
April until 25 November, a must for
visitors to the area. 2012 is the 80th
anniversary of the official opening of the
Thiepval Memorial. The theme of the
exhibition will be remembrance.
Personally our highlight for this year
was a private visit to the tunnels under
the village of Bouzincourt. Dating from
the 16 century, they were used by
successive generations and during one
very cold winter the whole village lived in
them. Now they are much decayed, many
passages inaccessible and not generally
open to the public. As we expected, there
are lots of names from WW1 soldiers
who sheltered in them. The feeling of
peace still remains and it was easy to
sense how the soldiers must have felt in
such a haven.
From
the
100+
names
we
photographed, we have so far traced 16
17
pneumonia and was buried in the local
cemetery.
The most emotional was one which
says, "Some of 2 HLI, Honours in the
Great War, 4612 Private D McAlpine, 3
times wounded. ”A
truly
wonderful
private and personal
memorial from his
pals. Daniel was
killed on 16 July
1917 and is buried
in Woburn Abbey
Cemetery, Cuinchy.
Needless to say we
shall be researching
further. Photos of
the others are on
the Branch website.
McAlpine Inscription & Grave
Finally
before
Kinchington, one of 5 Australian brothers, leaving the Somme this year, we were
4 of whom served and 2 died. In 1919 able to pay our respects at the burials of
whilst on leave in UK, he visited Killarney, 5 unknown soldiers in 3 cemeteries. May
and became ill. Following influenza, he they rest is peace.
died in the International hotel from septic
who died and where possible have visited
their graves and memorials. Some are as
far away as Canada and Ireland,
Killarney New Cemetery being the final
resting place of 28755 Private Robert
Somme July 2011 - Impressions from my
first visit: Paul Conlon
I have been interested in WW1 for
many years but only joined the WFA in
May 2011 and my first visit to the
battlefield was a solo undertaking and
timed to coincide with the 95th
anniversary of the “1st July”. My prereading was: Before Endeavours Fade,
Rose Coombs; Walking the Somme, Paul
Reed; and Major & Mrs Holt’s The
Western Front – South and Battle Map of
the Somme.
The Somme region seems an
incongruous setting for the slaughter of
1916.
The heavily farmed rolling
countryside has fields full of healthy and
a wide variety of crops. It contrasts with
18
my preference for countryside which is
more mountainous and rugged.
I visited locations which will familiar to
many readers of Despatch: Hawthorn
Ridge, Beaumont Hamel, Ulster Tower,
Newfoundland Park and more.
The
Thiepval Memorial is a towering presence
and in sight for much of the time when
travelling around. My opinion of this
iconic memorial was certainly changed
on seeing it for real. Photographs do not
do it justice as I had always considered it
an unlovely construction. Seen in context
the scale is awe inspiring, the memorial
and its setting is a fitting tribute to the
men who have no known grave and the
world changing events that took place on
this battlefield. I attended the moving
ceremony on the 1st July and returned the
following day to spend some quiet time
here.
I visited the Lochnagar Crater twice to
try to get a feel for what went on here. I
personally cannot envisage what went on
when this huge mine was set off.
When visiting many small cemeteries I
had them all to myself. The small
cemeteries can have just as much impact
as the larger ones. The mixture of
beautiful settings and small number of
graves carries a measure of intimacy
which is hard to explain. Every time I
stopped and took a few moments to
reflect the sound of birdsong was ever
present.
I was amazed by the sheer number of
people determined or dedicated to
keeping alive the memory of the Somme.
From the people who have been visiting
every July for the last 15-20 years, the
large numbers that attend the services,
the guys that re-enact events and the
professionals spreading the knowledge to
new people on lectures and tours.
Experiencing re-enactment was a
complete and very pleasant surprise to
me. On the morning of 1st July we
accompanied the guys from Essex in full
battle gear including Lee Enfields and
bayonets. After a large tot of rum we all
marched into no-mans-land at 7.30am.
These guys did the trip the hard way,
living under canvas for the duration. A
great source of information and great
company as well. Also attending was a
small party of Germans also dressed fully
in battle gear and they played a full role
in the events and were also good
company.
I went on one official tour headed up
by Steve Roberts from the Imperial War
Museum. The level of detail that this
team had about the events on the 1 July
as depicted in the film The Battle of the
Somme was impressive. It was a pretty
intensive afternoon and evening finishing
with Steve Roberts talking us through the
film scene by scene. It finished at 11pm
too late even for a nightcap but definitely
worth the time spent
In concluding I must mention Avril
Williams and her excellent establishment
“Ocean Villas”. The welcome, food,
drink, accommodation and company
added immeasurably to my first visit to
the Somme. The trip has inspired me to
plan more battlefield visits; with the Ypres
Salient and Verdun high on my wish list.
HIS WORK IS DONE HERE BUT STILL
REMAINS WITH US THE MEMORY OF
HIS LIFE - Pte L Wild, RASC
July 2011 WFA Battlefield Trip: Gaynor
Greenwood
On 3 July 2011, members of the
Bradford Mechanics Institute joined North
Lancashire WFA members for a
battlefield tour.
After an overnight sailing from Hull to
Zeebrugge, the first stop was a visit to
Essex Farm Cemetery, which linked to
our visit last year to John McRae’s grave
at Wimereux.
Onwards to La Belle
Alliance and New Irish Farm cemeteries.
Here the story was told of Tom Stoves,
killed by a shell and buried in the now
non-existent Yorkshire Cemetery and
then re-interred in New Irish Farm.
After lunch and a talk on the history of
the Menin Gate, the walking party made
their way to Ramparts Cemetery and
then by coach to Palingbeek. Here they
walked to Hedgerow Trench and First
DCLI cemeteries. Meanwhile the nonwalking party accompanied Denise North
on a tour of Ypres, looking at how it was
rebuilt. This was of great interest to
those WFA members who had attended
19
Denise's talk on this subject at the
Lancaster Branch a year ago.
On 5th July, the party travelled south,
visiting Prowse Point, Hyde Park Corner
and Fromelles cemeteries. After lunch at
the Poppy, the group visited Lochnagar
Crater, then the non-walkers travelled to
Mansell Copse. The walkers were taken
to Fricourt for a walk to Mansell Copse
via field paths.
After an overnight stop in Arras, there
was another visit to the Somme. First
stop was Serre No 1 and Railway Hollow.
After a short visit to the Thiepval Visitor
Centre, the walking party were taken to
the Ancre marshes from where they
explored the route back to Thiepval via
Authuille and the Granatloch. The rest of
the party visited Ulster Tower.
An overnight crossing from Zeebrugge
to Hull completed the trip. Many thanks
to Alan Hartley for organising the trip and
to Harry Taylor for leading the walks and
providing
his
usual
excellently
researched talks on the places we visited
and the men who served. Thanks also to
Stan who assisted Alan.
BOOK REVIEW: Howard Martin
The First World War Diaries and Letters
of Private William Hodgson 2nd/5th
Battalion King's Own Royal Lancaster
Regiment.
Those of you who have been present
at one of my talks at the North Lancashire
Branch WFA meetings may be aware
that I am most interested in the
individual's experience of the Great War.
These diaries, newly published by the
King's Own Royal Regiment Museum,
are a valuable addition to this area of
knowledge.
Private Hodgson was a pre-war
territorial with the 5th Battalion King's
20
Own, who's enlistment had expired in
March 1914. He expected to be called
up, but when this did not happen he reenlisted in 2/5th KORLR in November
1914. The diaries are a literate and very
readable account of his life in the army
during his training in England, until
February 1917 and service in France
from that date until his death on May 24th.
The diary entries vary from the
mundane, “Sunday March 5th 1916.
Came off guard at 7 a.m. Never went to
Church.” The somewhat miffed, “May
14th. We were not allowed out. North
Lancashire (Regiment) raided a shop.”
The quite relaxed, “April 2nd 1917. Got a
good night's sleep. No Duties but to clean
ourselves.” To the terrifying, “March 20th.
The night was pitch dark. 4 a.m. News
came that 4 raiders had been through
and tried to take Fred Harris off the fire
step. We had a patrol out and at 4 a.m. a
man stood up boldly on the parapet
drawing attention of guard while 3 others
got over unseen and pushed into the bay.
Four of our guard grappled with them and
they used leaded sticks smashing F
Harris helmet and wounding him. Lance
Corporal Slinger got a revolver bullet
through his gas helmet. They were driven
off.”
The book also contains letters home
and the 2/5th Bn. War Diaries covering
Pte. Hodgson's tragically short time in
France, ending with the brief, “May 24th.
Thursday (Empire Day). Casualties:Died of Wounds 1 Other Rank attached
to 170th Light Trench Mortar Battery.”
A worthwhile addition to anyone's
Great War library.
MARTIN’S CORNER: Martin Simpson –
Chairman, Cumbria Branch WFA
Our Christmas Lunch and AGM will be
on Sunday 4th December 2011 at the
Best Western Shap Wells Hotel which is
on the A6 between Shap and Kendal not
far from M6, Jct. 39. Post Code CA10
3QU. The day will commence between
11.30 am and 12.00 noon for a chat and
drinks followed by lunch at 12.30. Lunch
will be carvery style, with various choices
of starter, main and dessert courses (inc
vegetarian options).
The afternoon’s programme will
commence at 13.45 with the Branch
AGM. Afterwards the speaker will be
Peter Hart: subject to be finalised.
The cost of the day is £19.50 per
person. Contact me for more details if
you are interested in coming (tel: 01229
584141)
The programme for next year is as
follows (all meetings at Penrith British
Legion 7.45 for 8 pm, unless stated):
Feb 16th: ‘Guillimont 1916’ – Sean
Godfrey
April 19th: ‘Lord Kitchener
and the
Territorial Force and his decision to
ignore them” - Malcolm Johnson
June 10th: Occasional Day at the Best
Western Shap Wells. Speakers will be
Prof John Derry, Rob Thompson and
Peter Hart. Further details will be on the
WFA website Cumbria Branch Page in
due course
Aug 23rd: *The Basra Cemetery and
Memorial* - Vern Littley
Oct 18th: “The Court-Martial of the DLI 6”
- David Tattersfield
Dec 2nd: AGM and Christmas Lunch at
the Best Western Shap Wells. Guest
Speaker Dr Bryn Hammond. Further
details will be on the WFA website
Cumbria Branch Page in due course.
A GOOD LIFE IS OFTEN TOO SHORT
BUT A GOOD NAME ENDURETH FOR
EVER - Pte C Booth Manchester Regt
BRANCH AFFAIRS:
Remembering Joe Hodgson
1921 – 2011
Little did I realise when I agreed to
produce Despatch that in 2008 it would
bring Joe and I together.
We had
probably attended the same Branch
meetings before his advancing years had
limited his forays to Lancaster. However
he was determined to tell me what he
knew about Zeppelins raids on
Lancashire and nearly filled our answer
phone whilst we were away in France. It
was the start of me learning so much
from Joe and an all too brief friendship.
He was the veritable mine of
information on all things military and an
absolute gentleman.
Emmie looked
forward to his smiling face and chuckle
when he arrived for tea and scone before
I chauffeured him to our meetings (and
took advantage of his blue disabled
badge). On those journeys we were
never short of conversation as I shared
with Joe issues arising from my research
or Despatch and he gave me his insights.
A memorable day was in March 2009
when I visited the National Arboretum to
see the “Shot at Dawn” memorial in
connection with my “Several Battalion
Commanders” talk which covered the
exploits of the 17th (Bantam) battalion
Lancashire Fusiliers (LFs). Joe insisted
he keep me company although he had
21
been several times. His religious nature
determined we set off early to attend the
daily act of remembrance.
Like an
inquisitive
youngster
he
studied
memorials and worked-up his appetite for
lunch. On our return journey his archive
memory remembered the postcard
photos of Bantams in his collection at
home.
His home resembled an
Aladdin’s cave and he spirited out a rare
group photo of the 17th LFs which
included
one
of
my
battalion
commanders, it was a magical moment.
In the short time we were friends I
gleaned elements of his notable life and
have read with interest the Funeral
Address by Reverend Sheasby which
told of his admirable life and deeds. In
the week before his death I visited him
and he listened as I told him the plans for
our impending trip to Europe. In his
inimitable way he countered “ship” when I
referred to our “boat” crossing to
Rotterdam – despite his deteriorating
condition there was still the spark within
him. I am privileged to have known Joe.
(Terry Dean)
several pieces of prose text, a painting
and a wooden model. Notwithstanding,
regardless of the media used, most
sought to convey a message of sacrifice
and service.
The entrants applied
considerable imagination in their work.”
Collation of the 3 sets of marks gives
Stacie Byers of St Cecilia’s, Roman
Catholic Technology College as the
winner of this year’s competition.
Balshaw C.E High School, Leyland and
Bispham High School also submitted
entries.
Of Stacie’s winning entry Barrie writes:
“Two diaries for the price of one! It is
schizophrenic, yet it is very much an
excellent idea with the entries in one
diary complementing the other. At home
little Poppy is writing of her father
somewhere in France, while Dad is
writing of his feelings in France and the
news from home.” Stacie has been
awarded £100 and a book (H.P.
Willmott’s “WORLD WAR 1”) for her entry
and St Cecilia’s will hold the Armistice
Prize trophy for a third year.
To give a flavour of Stacie’s work here
are the last diary entries of her father Jim
in France and Poppy at home:
JIM: 27th April 1915
ARMISTICE PRIZE 2011 (+S)
Andrew Brooks, Barrie Bertram and
Peter Denby have marked the entries for
this year’s competition and Barrie’s
general comments provide a good
overview: “This year’s competition has
proved to be more challenging and
fascinating. First, there has been a
welcome increase in the number of
entrants (18 as opposed to just 7 last
year), the enthusiasm that has been
shown, and the fact that not all of the
entries were poems. In fact, there were
22
Dear Diary,
I have to write this quickly as I have
just been told that me and 5 other
soldiers in my trench have to crawl out
into No Man’s Land, find a crater made
by a bomb, and wait all day, watching for
movement in the enemies trench. As
soon as we see anything, a light or
movement … we shoot.
With no
hesitation. I am not a man who can kill
easily. I have never killed a man in my
life, and I hope I don’t have to. I don’t
belong in this place. I belong with my
wife and daughter, at home with each
other. And I will get there, no matter what
it takes. I love them.
I will write when I get back.
POPPY: 28th April 1915
Dear Diary,
Something scary has happened to
mummy. A telegram came this morning,
and the second she opened it she
collapsed onto her knees, sobbing so
loud it sounded like she was in pain. I
asked her if she was ok, but she just
replied with more floods of tears. I
retreated to my room, and when I came
out after an hour, she was curled up on
the sofa, a photo of daddy pressed to her
heart. It was wet with tears, and so were
her cheeks. She was sleeping gently.
I’ve come back to my room again but I
am very frightened, so I’m going to sneak
out and look at the telegram.
Love Poppy xx
This is my daddy, Jim
Walters. He died on
27th April 1915 fighting
in the British Army. He
was a hero and very
brave. I love him to the
moon and back, and always will.
R.I.P. daddy
To build further on the increased
entries this year Andy Gregson of St
Cecilia’s has met with three history
teachers from other schools and all 3
said they would enter in 2012. Also he
has contacted other schools and
currently expects a minimum of 5 schools
to enter next year. Furthermore it is my
intention to seek sponsorship of the
competition in order to generate interest
in what Andy Gregson regards as “a very
worthy competition”.
MEETING REPORTS
The French at Gallipoli: May 2011. (27
attended)
In his own inimitable style, one that our
members have been fortunate to observe
on many occasions, Peter Hart delivered
a talk on an aspect of the Gallipoli
campaign that is almost always ignored
by many British and Anzac historians,
namely
the
considerable
French
involvement.
He made the point at the outset of his
talk that the French were not keen to be
involved in the expedition but really had
no choice because they wanted to keep
an eye on what their allies were up to in
that part of the world! The division they
assembled (1st Division of the Corps
Expeditionnaire d’Orient) was a mixture
of various French, Senegalese, Foreign
Legion and Zouave battalions. They were
well trained troops and were well
supported by excellent artillery in the
form of their 75mm guns. The action had
not started off well for the French when
their battleship Bouvet had been sunk in
the Narrows with the loss of over 600
men.
General Albert d’Amade was the
commander and the convoy set off from
both Marseilles and North Africa, meeting
up with the British at Malta. When they
landed at Mudros it was noticed that the
French trained more than their British
counterparts. It was decided the French
would make a landing at Kum Kale on the
Asiatic side of the Dardanelles and
subdue the Turkish batteries as they
were able to fire directly onto the
beaches at Helles. The landing was
successful as the beach at Kum Kale was
undefended but the French faced a more
serious threat at Yeni Shehr where the
Turks had good defensive positions in
23
front of their batteries. As the French
advanced
reconnaissance
showed
Turkish reinforcements arriving and the
French decided to dig in at Kum Kale.
Peter then described the very confused
situation as some Turks tried to surrender
and others occupied houses in Kum Kale
and continued the fight. The situation was
resolved when General Hamilton ordered
the French to move over to Gallipoli to
support the British. d’Amade agreed, as
his remit to prevent the Turks shelling the
landings had been successful.
In the various battles for Kirithia the
French were positioned on the right flank
and were subjected to shelling from the
Asiatic side. The British attack pivoted on
the French but the initial attack failed as
did the next on the 6-8th May. The French
were faced with the formidable gully of
Kereves Dere and their only way to
progress was to move up the gully. They
were fired at from behind and there was
nowhere they were safe. General
d’Amade was recalled to France on May
15th and replaced by General Henri
Gouaud, who was just as eager to
continue the attack, however the 3rd
Battle of Kirithia on the 4th June was a
disaster as the Turks slaughtered the
French. Further attacks using the new
tactic of ‘Bite and hold’ made some small
gains (Hariot Redoubt).
Peter finished his talk by describing the
end of the French involvement in this
campaign. Their depot at ‘V’ beach was
being constantly shelled and another
attack on Kirithia (12-13th July) resulted in
the loss of 800 men. This was the last
straw and from then on they adopted a
policy of ‘Live and let live’. Matters in
Salonica became more important to the
French and they started to move men to
this theatre of the war. Their part in the
Gallipoli campaign cost them 27,000
24
Killed, wounded and missing; with some
20,000 evacuated sick. (Andrew Brooks)
Leadership, Morale and Esprit de Corps:
The Winning Factor? : June 2011 (28
attended)
Terry Dean’s talk gave us a fascinating
insight into a little researched but vital
element of the Great War, Officer
Leadership Training. It concentrated on
the work and principles promulgated by
Brigadier Kentish, with much of the
narrative spoken by his great nephew.
Given control of the 3rd Army School at
Flixicout he developed a month long
course focussing on leadership, moral
and esprit de corps. The leadership skills
would come from an understanding of
human nature and care, example setting,
a manifest knowledge of the job and by
being optimistic and enthusiastic at all
times. Morale, he believed, would be
improved by being kind and considerate
and by giving good orders at all times.
Esprit de corps should be developed by
the officer never thinking of himself but of
his unit, imploring it to strive for company
and battalion.
Asked by Haig, he set up a senior
officers’ school at Aldershot aiming, with
a 3 month course, to teach leadership
rather than tactics, enabling officers to
become true leaders of men. He believed
over-training was counter productive and
that every regiment should have its own
sports grounds.
Measurement of the success of his
methods cannot be quantified but it
formed the basis for modern Army
leadership methods.
Haig believed it
played a significant part when thanking
him by saying ‘nobody but you or I will
know the impact of your school but we
know it was the winning factor’.
We certainly had a winning talk by
Terry, superbly illustrated and narrated,
giving us an insight into both a
personality and topic we knew nothing of.
(Peter Bamford)
AFTER HARD SUFFERING COMETH
REST MOTHER FATHER SISTERS
BROTHERS - Pte F Hargreaves KORLR
GOMMECOURT: July 2011 (15 att’ded)
With Niall Cherry’s talk coinciding with
many members visiting France only a
sparse audience enjoyed Niall’s analysis
of
the
diversionary
attack
on
Gommecourt and of the participating
British Commanders.
The German positions at Gommecourt
Salient were amongst the strongest on
the Western Front. Responsibility for the
attack fell to Lieut. Gen. Snow’s VII Corps
in Gen. Allenby’s Third Army.
Haig
rejected proposals for the diversionary
attack to take place at a weaker point
such as Vimy. Beyond allotting 46 (North
Midland) Division under Maj. Gen.
Montagu-Stuart-Wortley to attack the
north of the salient with 56 (London)
Division under Maj. Gen. Hull attacking
the south of the salient Snow exercised
little control.
Wortley was on Haig’s
“black” list after expressing concern at
Haig’s orders to attack the Hohenzollern
Redoubt at Loos, an attack that proved
disastrous.
Concerned at the width of No-Mans
Land 56 Division dug new trenches to
narrow the gap and when they attacked
through smoke at 7.30 am on 1st July
elements of the Division took their
objectives. 46 Division had to contend
with unfavourable wind which made
smoke ineffective, difficult ground and
extensive German barb wire which
resulted
in
their
attack
being
unsuccessful. Wortley was ordered to
attack again but only mounted a weak
mid-afternoon attack.
The Germans
were therefore able to concentrate
counter-attacks on the Londoners who by
9 pm were forced to withdraw.
6769 casualties were suffered and
Haig endorsed Snow’s recommendation
that Wortley should be sacked. (TD)
Accumulated Weariness: living with the
effects of war: August 2011 (26 att’ded)
After the War 15,000 men applied for
pensions as a result of shell shock, but
the true number of those who suffered
from this was much higher.
Tricia Platts gave an excellent
presentation, which included the personal
experiences of several soldiers, detailing
the causes and symptoms of shell shock
and how it was treated. The Naval and
Military Press has recently published a
War Office Report on shell shock.
In the rush to enlist, few men were
rejected, which meant that there were
some “veritable weeds” in the army. The
appalling conditions in the trenches
caused unbearable strain, even on the
fittest.
Shell shock was seen as contagious
and officers were treated differently to
other ranks, being sent to hospitals and
rest areas rather than lunatic asylums.
Treatment included experimental and
“talking” therapies, massages, workshops
and convalescence, but institutions were
needed for the more severe casualties
where psychotherapy had not worked.
Medical Boards were established to
determine whether disablement was
caused by war and in 1919 these were
taken over by the Ministry of Pensions.
Over 1,000,000 applications for pensions
for all conditions were made 1919-1920.
Discharged servicemen’s organisations,
25
such as NUXS the National Union of ExServicemen, grew up and helped to
provide men with support. (Gaynor
Greenwood)
CHARLIE’S WAR – PART 1: September,
2011 (24 attended)
‘Eee bah gum, a talk given by a
southern softie on a fine Yorkshire
Regiment in t’Great War, whatever next?’
To that question, the answer must be
‘Charlie’s War – Part 2’, and, for my part,
September 2012 cannot come around
soon enough to enjoy the second helping
of Chris Payne’s account of his
grandfather who we left enjoying the
delights of an attachment to the 63rd
Sanitary Section.
Through a treasure trove of letters that
were written home to Charlie’s wife Ida
we get a picture of a man who,
understandably, would have preferred not
to have been were he was, who
recognised that the ‘beastly Hun’ needed
to be given what for, and yet recognised
where his duty lay, while rightfully being
concerned about his ‘little woman’ back
home in a London that occasionally
enjoyed the attention of the Zeps and the
Gothas, not to say the odd munitions
factory explosion. Like countless millions,
Charlie Payne was a small cog in the
machinery of industrial scale destruction
that was the Western Front, yet the
letters are from a man who had not lost
his humanity and his links home.
Chris Payne’s talk took us through his
life from Charlie’s earliest days from his
birth in Westminster, briefly sharing with
us the family background and then his
entry into the khaki-clad ranks of the
military, even though his uniform was
somewhat backwards in coming forward!
Categorised as B1 on entry, some eight
and a half months of robust training in
26
such exotic locations as Clacton, West
Hartlepool and Neasham ensued, all of it
designed to make him fit for the front and
at the end of July, 1917 he would be sent
to France. Having started out by enlisting
with the East Surreys, he left England as
a Green Howard, only to become a
member of the 2/5 Bn, Duke of
Wellington’s Regiment in France. Such
were the exigencies of the military.
Having now trained as a Lewis
Gunner, Charlie’s first taste of action
comes at the Battle of Cambrai, where
his Battalion, as part of the 62nd Division’s
186th Brigade, would be engaged at
Havrincourt and the Bois de Bourlon
between the 20th and 28th November, and
later in defensive positions established to
forestall the German counter-attacks in
early December. This is followed by
lengthy marches to rest areas, a mouth
watering Christmas dinner of stewed beef
followed by raisin duff (what no custard?),
and employment with the 63rd Section
fashioning ablution furniture.
Chris Payne skilfully blends the
broader military picture with Charlie’s life
as seen through his letters, importantly
reminding us that each man who served
was a human being and not solely a
khaki-clad cog. All that I can now do is to
award Chris my Standard and Poors
rating of ‘Triple E’, by saying that the talk
was
Excellent,
Enjoyable
and
Educational, and all the better for being in
Estuary English – by ‘eck! (BH Bertram)
A German soldier’s journey from the
Baltic to the Black Sea: October 2011 (29
attended)
When commencing his talk Andrew
Brooks shared with us one of his
objectives post retirement which was to
increase his knowledge of the Eastern
Front. He started buying material in 1995
but it seemed the purchase of some 350
postcards written by Hans Deggendorf,
who served in the Motor Transport
Column of the Bavarian Cavalry Division,
has been the catalyst to Andrew
increasing his knowledge of places,
geography and all things military east of
the river Oder in WW1.
After giving an overview of the
campaigns in the east culminating in the
abdication of the Czar in March 1917
Andrew told how Hans Deggendorf’s war
probably started in the St Mihiel Salient in
March 1915 before moving east of
Konigsberg. He then expertly described
by reference to the many cards written by
Hans and little seen maps how Hans
moved south from Lithuania via the Pripet
Marshes, Bucharest and other places to
cross the Black Sea to the Crimea from
where he was evicted in September
1918.
Andrew concluded his talk with a slide
show of postcard photos which he had
not been able to use in his main
presentation. It was an evening which
revealed to me (and possibly others) a
major aspect of WW1 where my
knowledge could usefully be increased.
TD
PROGRAMME OF FUTURE MEETINGS
After last November’s errors in this
year’s programme I hope there are no
problems this time!
However in
producing Despatch I wonder whether we
should change our meetings to the
second Monday of each month.
This would mean all meetings are on
the 2nd Monday except possibly at Easter,
we would be more festive at our meeting
in December and it could benefit
meetings attendances and Members.
A suitable issue to talk about at next
month’s AGM?
2012 PROGRAMME
(ALL MEETINGS ON FIRST MONDAY
IN MONTH AT 7.30 PM EXCEPT
WHERE STATED OTHERWISE)
Dec 5th: “A.G.M. and Christmas Social” –
An invitation to members to speak for ten
minutes on any WW1 topic.
Jan 9th (2nd MONDAY IN MONTH):
“German South West Africa, 1914-15” –
John Restorick (Bradford Mech. Inst.
WW1 Group)
Feb 6th : To be advised - Peter Hart (Oral
Historian (IWM) & author)
Mar 5th: “Army Chaplaincy, a Historical
View” - Rev. John Bolton OBE MA (ex
Army Chaplain)
April 2nd: *A Line in the Sand” – James
Barr (Author)
May 8th TUESDAY: “Macdonell’s Multi
Continental & 3 Dimensional War” – Terry
Dean (N Lancs W.F.A.)
June 11th (2nd MONDAY IN MONTH)
“German Commerce War Part 3 – Under
the Sea” - Graham Kemp (N Lancs
W.F.A)
July 2nd: “A Nurse’s Life in France and
Flanders” - Sue Light (Sussex W.F.A.)
Aug 6th: “Fritz Harber – German Scientist
at War” - Dave Wright (Scientific
Historian)
Sept 3rd: “Charlie’s War Part 2 – 2/5 Duke
of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment,
Jan 1918 to Feb 1919” – Dr Chris Payne
Oct 1st: “POWs in Russia” – Andrew
Brooks (N Lancs W.F.A.)
Nov 5th: “Chairman’s Night” – Stan
Wilkinson
Dec 3rd: “A.G.M. and Christmas Social –
An invitation to members to speak for ten
minutes on any WW1 topic
27
BALLONS DES VOSGES:
Terry Dean (+S)
The edges of the pillbox
aperture frames a stunning
westward looking view of
one element
of the
German’s panorama from
their positions in the le
Linge complex of trenches
in the Vosges Mountains.
I had been attracted
there following Andrew’s
account
in
last
November’s Despatch of
his brief visit to WW1 sites
in the central Vosges.
During WW1 the trees would be obliterated by shellfire and the footpath to aid 21st
century sightseers in front of the pillbox would not exist thus affording the German’s
dominating short and long views over the French positions. No wonder the French
had appalling losses in their 1915 attacks. You can read and see more about what I
found in my all too brief venture into the Ballons des Vosges by visiting our website.
LANCASHIRE’S BEST KEPT WAR MEMORIAL 2011
Croston has won the award for the best kept War
Memorial for 2011 with Chipping and Heapey being
commended for their entries.
Museum of Lancashire
I understand the renovated museum will
reopen on Saturday 26th November. A
World War I gallery will be a significant
feature with many items in the display not
having been on public exhibition before.
Branch Members will hopefully visit and I
look forward to a report for next Despatch.
Western Front Association, North Lancashire Branch
Chairman: Stan Wilkinson
Treasurer: Gaynor Greenwood
Tel: 01524 262302
Tel: 01524 410750
Secretary: Dr. Graham Kemp
Editor: Terry Dean
Tel: 01524 310649
Tel: 01772 864182 Mob: 07866 493210
email: [email protected] email: [email protected]
Website: www.wfanlancs.co.uk